


Sluggish Sentiment

by WadaFics



Series: FE3H Kink Meme Fills [2]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Accidental Kissing, After-War Setting, Crimson Flower Route, Established Relationship, Fluff galore, M/M, Side Edelgard von Hresvelg
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:35:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,741
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24793207
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WadaFics/pseuds/WadaFics
Summary: Due to staying up far too late the previous night, Hubert must attend a morning meeting with the Emperor and Prime Minister in a rather fatigued state of mind. As the meeting drags on, Hubert is overcome by daydreaming into a sleepy haze that leads him to accidentally kissing Ferdinand in front of a large group of political guests. Embarrassment Ensues.[ Filled for an FE3H Kink Meme ]
Relationships: Ferdinand von Aegir/Hubert von Vestra
Series: FE3H Kink Meme Fills [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1787536
Comments: 19
Kudos: 131





	Sluggish Sentiment

**Author's Note:**

> The following fic was written to fill out this prompt:
> 
> "Post Time skip because I'm a sucker for these two and their adult designs  
> Basically Edelgard is holding a meeting and Hubert has to leave early. On his way out, he accidentally kisses Ferdinand in front of everyone  
> It happens like Hubert is all oh I must go, and he bows to Edelgard but then takes Ferdinand's chin and kisses him on the lips and is all "I'll see you at tea" before walking out"

Perhaps staying up until the first peeks of sunlight graced the nighttime sky had not been the best plan of action for Hubert, especially when he had plans quite early in the morning with Her Majesty. However, the Minister of Imperial Affairs was a _stubborn_ man, and when he had his mind set upon something, he did not quit until he saw his course of action seen through until the very end. Thus, instead of getting the recommended hours of sleep, he had worked relentlessly upon his research in the palace’s library.

In particular, his current focus was upon enhancing and crafting various poisons and elixirs that could be of use to him and his taste for subterfuge. While he did like the variety he had been using before, he feared that an abundant amount were a bit too potent for interrogations. Many of his current poison and blends were quite lethal, even in the smallest of doses. Although this worked well for a discreet assassinations or for coating blades and the tips of arrows in the midst of battle, he simply wanted more options.

It was getting quite irksome to go through the hassle of tracking down, drugging, and then kidnapping a target if they were only going to die before being of any use. What is so much to ask for a person to not keel over in the first few minutes after being injected with a fatal poison? Having at least a few of his questions answered couldn’t be that large of a request to fulfill, right? Hubert was bored of seeing dozens of nameless faces die while tied up in a chair.

This all added up to Hubert staying up far later than he had anticipated. He had been hoping to do further research upon different poisonous plants and herbs that he could possibly collect and use to create his own new batch of poisons. Perhaps if he was able to properly balance out the proportions, then maybe he could create a particular poison that would not kill his target so quickly. His late night studies had him reading up on a plethora of plant-life, which he had been graciously given the idea to consider looking into some of the tomes on flora and other vegetation by Bernadetta.

If he used more natural poisons and side effects of different plants, he might be able to still torture his targets and get the needed information without them dying within the first few minutes. So, Hubert had filed through a rather hefty book on the different vegetation that covered the entirety of Fódlan until he had fallen asleep at his desk for perhaps just a few hours before he was awoken by the sound of a bell chiming in the distance on the outskirts of the palace.

In a rush to make it on time to his morning obligations with Edelgard and the Prime Minister, Hubert changed from his wrinkled clothing of the previous day into a more fresh, finely pressed set of clothing. He lazily fiddled with his hair, though he never did much more than to brush down the ever tedious patch or two that dared to stand up in a disheveled fashion after one of his infamous sleeping sessions at his study instead of a proper bed. Slipping on a pristine pair of gloves and collecting a set of documents that he had completed earlier in the week for this upcoming meeting, Hubert deemed himself ready to begin his morning.

As he walked, he enjoyed the gentle breeze that was cool against his face as the sun was yet to reach its peak for the day. The weather was growing steadily warmer as of late, but Hubert did not mind that heat so much. When one lived within the Enbarr for practically their entire lives, you grew accustomed to the warmer climate. Besides, it was much fairer than the freezing weather that plagued the north. He internally shivers at a few memories of being stationed in such frigid conditions during warfare. It made him grateful that he would ( _hopefully_ ) never have to return there during the winter months in his lifetime.

Approaching the entrance for the council room, he took in a deep breath and pushed the doors open. Stepping into the room, his eyes quickly look over the entirety of the room, scanning for possible threats, taking in the decorum and furniture, and eyeing the several faces that had already arrived before him. As per usual, he could see Edelgard already in her seat, her hands folded in front of her upon the rather long wooden table. She was currently conversing with Ferdinand, and judging from their expressions, he assumed it was casual in nature.

Taking his spot on the right side of Edelgard, he greets her with a gracious nod and respectful acknowledgement without interrupting her current discussion. He also makes brief eye contact with Ferdinand, who offers him a tender smile that causes Hubert’s neutral expression to melt for a moment with a dusting of faint pink to his pale cheeks. How strange it felt to be so thoroughly thwarted before this meeting had begun. Truthfully, Ferdinand made it quite difficult for Hubert to keep his serious appearance whenever both men attended political business simultaneously.

“Ah! Good morning, Hubert! I am glad to see that you have made it.” Ferdinand says, inviting him into the conversation so that he was not left out. Plus, he desired to chat with Hubert, as he had been so swamped with work these past few days that he had barely been able to spend any time with the man. While he adored all the trust and responsibility that had been placed upon him with his current position, there were times where he felt the tiniest speck of annoyance at the seemingly endless list of tasks to accomplish. Ferdinand is certain that Hubert had to share a similar way of thinking, even if his partner was much more of a workaholic than himself.

“Indeed. Have I ever given you concern that I would not be punctual?” Hubert replies, a teasing smile curving at his lips. He is aware that Ferdinand’s words had not been meant to be taken at face value, but he finds amusement in the way the other man huffs and smiles back at him with a mischievous glint in his eyes. Hubert is certain that although Ferdinand expressed his words in a formal manner, he had been more or less articulating the fact that he personally was overjoyed to see the other for selfish reasons.

“Perhaps not. Though, the day may arrive.” Ferdinand chuckles, leaning his cheek on the palm of his hand as he gazed upon Hubert in a fashion that was too obvious for the other’s comfort. It made him grow a bit tense, straightening his posture in his seat and placing his fist up to his mouth as he clears his throat. If someone had told him that he would be the type of man to become undone by a simple look years prior, he would have been offended and ridiculed them. Yet, here he sat, frazzled by the smallest of flirtations of the Prime Minister.

“With your interference? I would bet on both of you nearly missing an entire meeting at least once. Likely twice.” Edelgard adds, raising an eyebrow and looking back and forth at the two. She smirks as both of her sappy advisors grow flushed and silent, avoiding making eye contact with her. She appreciated the fact that she was able to discuss in such a friendly manner with the two of them, since far too many people were afraid to converse with her in a casual setting. She needed the comforts of amiable conversations and pleasant laughter as much as any other person, perhaps even more with the stress of her position.

“M-My lady-- Please, do not fret over such...scenarios.” Hubert starts, but bites his tongue back as Edelgard raises a hand to silence him.

“Hush, I am only teasing. You must relax, Hubert.” She sighs, studying his face for a moment longer before adding, “You also look rather tired. Have you been getting proper sleep?”

The question caused Hubert to blink, moving a hand to feel under his eyes. He must have had rather obvious dark circles if she was able to tell so much by a simple glance. He did not wish to cause her or Ferdinand worry, so he shakes his head.

“I have slept fine recently.” He assures her, his eyes catching the sight of Ferdinand looking skeptical about his answer. He also believes that Edelgard was not convinced, but she had little time to spare for arguing about it as the final few guests walked through the door.

* * *

This morning’s meeting was rather dull, especially for Hubert since he was here more to absorb the information and stay knowledgeable about the current happenings. He was not one who was being asked to participate in any of the conversations. That duty fell more upon the Prime Minister, who came alive before him as he discussed enthusiastically with their guests. Her Majesty also added her own voice to the mix when called for, but she also knew that this was more of Ferdinand’s area of expertise, _captivating_ their allied guests with his intellect and charm.

Since he was distancing himself from the conversation, Hubert began to feel the effects of his choice to stay up until dawn fall upon him much harder. His eyelids grew heavy, tempted to close as he stared idly upon Ferdinand across from him. His senses dulled as he fell into a rather drowsy state of mind. His mind felt sluggish as he yawned as discreetly as he could into his hand.

His ability to hear and make out the words of the others voices dissipated as the meeting dragged on. He was left only able to focus upon the sound of Ferdinand’s voice, though even his words were still incoherent in his fatigued mind. His head begins to slowly dip and leans forward towards the table, but he would catch himself each time and shake himself out before he made a fool of himself.

His thoughts become a tangled mess, ranging from lingering questions from his research to his plans for an afternoon tea session with Ferdinand. That particular thought sticks out in his head, and he lets his sleepy head travel down this path. He can already paint a picture of Ferdinand waiting for his arrival in their favorite spot. He can see the back of Ferdinand’s hair, soft and flowing like the sun setting on the horizon. He can hear him faintly humming as he pours a cup of tea for himself, as well as a cup of coffee for his guest. The strong scent hits Hubert’s nostrils, and he feels warmed before even taking his first sip.

As Hubert daydreams in his chair, he fails to notice when another person enters the room until he is approached by said person. He sits up in his chair lazily, turning his head and allowing one of his own subordinates to whisper into his ear and hand him a folded note under the table. Blinking a few times to try and shake the tiredness out of his eyes, Hubert nods towards the other man and offers a quiet whisper that he would follow him out shortly.

Still rather fatigued, Hubert gains the attention of the table and offers his sincerest apologies that he must excuse himself from the meeting early. He had an urgent matter to tend to, thus this little meeting would have to continue without his presence. The group seems satisfied with his excuse, offering small formal farewells to Hubert as he rose from his chair and pushed it into the table.

“I graciously appreciate your understanding, but I must be going now.” Taking a bow towards the Empress, he turns to leave the room. However, his eyes flicker towards Ferdinand, and a resurgence of his half asleep thoughts possess him to approach his chair from behind. He hovers behind him, gaining the attention of the entire table once more as he stood in place for a moment without making a sound or moving a muscle. The wheels in his head turn very slowly as he blindly listens to his hazy thoughts, acting upon impulse.

“Hubert, is there something the matter?” Ferdinand asks politely, looking up at his partner and catching the glossy shimmer in his eyes. Yet, even he was not able to predict his next move.

Bending down, Hubert moves one gloved hand to grab Ferdinand’s by his chin and pull him upwards. Before he can react, Ferdinand finds himself drawn into his partner’s embrace, their lips suddenly pressed together in a gentle kiss. Hubert rubs his thumb over his cheek as he cherishes the sensation of his mouth overwhelmed by the softness of the other’s lips, and the warmth that spreads across Ferdinand’s cheeks at having their lips brush together in the middle of a rather important meeting.

Ferdinand’s mind goes blank at Hubert’s delicate touch, very familiar with the smoothness upon his skin from the fabric of his glove cradling his chin. His eyes flutter in shock, but close tightly once he finds himself unable to ignore the pounding of his heart at how romantic of a gesture this was. He knew Hubert not to be a man of public affection, so this stunt was _mind boggling._

As Hubert pulls back, he doesn’t give any of the others in the room even a glance. He merely smiles sleepily at Ferdinand and admires the blush that stains his lover’s cheeks.

“I shall see you at tea, Ferdinand.” He says, turning and leaving the room of stunned faces at such a brazen expression of affection. Left alone to deal with the aftermath, Ferdinand coughs a few times to act as if he were clearing his throat. He can barely meet the eyes of the others, his face burning up from the embarrassment. He was not the type of man to be shy about his relationship, but there was something to be said about suddenly being pulled into a kiss in front of a bunch of political guests.

“W-Well, shall we-- ahh, continue with our...last topic?” He tries to find support, his own mind starting to fog over. He had been on fire this entire meeting with snappy points and delightful wit, but he suddenly felt incapable of holding a conversation at all. Never had Hubert suddenly kissed him out of the blue in such an unapologetic fashion in front of others. Yet, now that he had, Ferdinand would be a **liar** if he said he did not like the small _thrill_ it set off in his chest.

“Yes, please go on then. I believe you were mentioning opening a trade route?” Edelgard interjects, offering a saving grace to her Prime Minister, who apparently was out of commission from a mere peck on the lips. Honestly, both of them were absolutely hopeless. Fortunately, their guests were kind enough to not say anything about Hubert’s audacious act and began to speak once more where they had left off.

Meanwhile, once Hubert had left the meeting and had been walking long enough to be woken up from the movement, his mind peeled away the tired haze and left him to confront his actions. He stopped in place, quickly bringing his hands to his face in embarrassment. His pale complexion grows bright red, spreading all the way to his ears as he is haunted by his own actions.

His brain had no trouble keeping him awake now as it _tortured_ him by repeating the scene endlessly in his head. There was no way he would ever be able to show his face again to any of those men! He would not be able to look them in the eyes after impulsively kissing Ferdinand when he had been in the middle of conversing with them. His heart pounded against his chest, nearly hurting him as his whole body grew hot and flustered from the humiliation.

He could already hear the way Edelgard was going to mock him for this for weeks to come, too.

Hubert decided at that moment that he would always make sure to sleep the _proper amount_ before an early morning meeting from then on.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!!!  
> If you enjoy, please consider leaving a comment/kudos! It really helps to motivate me to write more!
> 
> First, I want to apologize for forcing my own head canon of Hubert being far too into poisons in the beginning of this fic. I always feel the need to write some lengthy exposition before getting to the prompt, so I'm sorry. However, I still hope I was able to capture what you wanted! 
> 
> Also, I promise my next kink fill will actually be NSFW. I just couldn't pass up how cute this prompt was!!!
> 
> As always, thanks for your support and feel free to message me about FerdiBert on Twitter @MahouMiss


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